Thank You for Remembering
by See Them Llamas Run
Summary: Aoyama forgets Ichigo's birthday, but she recieves a gift from someone who rememebered. Oneshot.


Disclaimer: I do not own TMM.

**Thank You For Remembering**

It was a lovely sunny day. Not a day that any teenager would want to spend at work; however, for Ichigo, work was unavoidable. Nevertheless, it was anticipated, bearing in mind that Aoyama would accompany her on the walk there. Today it was especially looked forward to, because this day happened to be Ichigo's fourteenth birthday.

Aoyama was waiting for her after school. He smiled upon seeing her. "Good afternoon, Momomiya-san," he greeted. "How has your day been?"

The two began walking. "It's been great!" she lied enthusiastically. "But I really can't wait until your kendo match tomorrow. I think you'll be great!"

"Thanks," said Aoyama, blushing slightly.

Ichigo was quiet for a moment, trying to imagine what kind of gift Aoyama-kun had in store for her. _Maybe he got me jewelry?_ she thought. _Or maybe tickets to an amusement park…or maybe…_ She gasped. _Maybe he planned a surprise party!_ This idea made her want to squeal with excitement, but she somehow managed to hold it in.

"Momomiya-san?" said Masaya, bringing Ichigo back into reality.

"Yes?" she asked earnestly. "What is it, Aoyama-kun? Was there something you wanted to give me?"

Aoyama shook his head, a little confused. "No…I was just wondering if there was something on your mind…you're kind of quiet."

_How sweet that he would worry!_ Ichigo thought to herself. "Oh, well, I guess I'm just spacing out a little! Haha!" She sweatdropped. "Um, so, where are we going…?"

Masaya gave her a strange look. "Uh…well…I thought we were going to the café…?"

Ichigo's face turned bright red; she was surprised her cat ears didn't come out. "Right! Yeah. I knew that."

The two walked in silence the rest of the way to the café. Anticipation building, Ichigo quietly wondered exactly what Aoyama-kun might have in store for her. It wasn't until they had reached the inside of the busy café – a very unromantic place to present a gift – that the truth occurred.

Aoyama had forgotten her birthday.

She didn't believe it at first, but it was inevitably true. The boy whom she loved so dearly and even claimed to return her feelings had forgotten Ichigo's most important day of the year.

"Don't worry. It'll be over in a few hours."

Ichigo looked up at Masaya's smiling face. She supposed he had noticed how upset she looked all of the sudden. "Ah, yes," she said, forcing a smile. "Thanks!

"Well, I'll see you." He began to walk away.

Ichigo felt herself tense up. "W-Wait!"

Stopping, the boy gave her a confused look. "What is it?"

"Um…I…" Ichigo sighed, realizing she couldn't bring herself to tell him. "Have a nice day, Aoyama-kun."

It was then that Aoyama did something quite unexpected – he kissed her on the cheek. "You too."

She smiled as he walked away, still a little sad he had forgotten, but she decided that such affection from Aoyama-kun would make up for it. "But still…"

"Are you just going to stand there all day? There's work to be done."

Ichigo whirled around, suddenly angry. "Well geez! I just got here, you know!"

Shirogane rolled his eyes. "Don't give me that. I just saw you standing there chatting with your boyfriend." Before she could retort, he said, "Table nine's a mess. Get to it." With that, he walked off.

Ichigo's face turned bright red as she fumed silently. She stomped over to the table and had just began cleaning it when someone _else_ attacked her.

"Ichigo!" Minto cried. "We're out of soap in the kitchen."

"What do you want me to do about it?"

"Go get more! Oh, make sure it's the 'Apple Fresh' scent? Don't let your little brain get it confused with lemony fresh."

Ichigo's eyes narrowed dangerously. "Why don't you get it YOURSELF!"

Minto stuck up her nose. "Zakuro-oneesama and I are preoccupied at the moment."

"What makes you think _I_ have the time? I just got here! I'm not your _servant_, Minto, you little – "

"Now, Ichigo, don't be vulgar," Minto said matter-of-factly.

Another interrupted before the two could argue any further. "Don't bother yourselves." Both girls turned their heads in surprise to see it was Shirogane that had spoken. "Now both of you get back to work," he ordered, walking out the door.

Minto shrugged, and Ichigo went back to cleaning her table, still clearly pissed off. _Geez! I can't believe it! First Aoyama-kun forgot my birthday, then everyone has to be so mean, and I bet Shirogane will make me work longer just because…hey, what's this?_

She paused when she discovered a small box on the table. It was made of pink velvet and looked like it held some kind of jewelry. There were two words written on it:

_Ichigo Momomiya_.

"Th-That's me," the girl said silently. She opened it uneasily to find two ruby, heart shaped earrings with little diamonds on the edges. Her heart beat quickly in her chest. Noticing a small piece of paper, she took it out and unfolded it.

_Bet you didn't see this coming. Happy birthday, baka ichigo. Now get back to work! – Shirogane_

With a gasp, Ichigo jumped up and ran out the café door. "Shirogane!" she cried. "Shirogane!"

By the time he was in view, she had yelled his name several times, but he was still to far to hear her.

"Shirogane!" she called out. "Ryou! Wait!"

Surprised that he had heard someone call him by his first name, Ryou stopped walking to see a very sweaty and out-of-breath Ichigo, who had been pursuing him for nearly half a mile. "What do you want?" he asked, a bit shocked.

"I…" she breathed, "need to…tell you something."

"Why couldn't you just wait until I got back to the café?"

Ichigo felt her face turn beat red, but decided there was no time for yelling at him to cover her embarrassment. "I, um, just wanted to say…" she took a deep breath, preparing herself to say something she never dreamed she would say to _Shirogane_. "Th-thank you. For remembering, I mean."

After staring at her for a moment, Ryou smirked and flicked her forehead. "Baka ichigo. How could I forget?" With that, he turned and walked away; but not before catching a glimpse of Ichigo's delightfully smiling face. It tugged at the corner of his mouth, making him want to smile, too.

--

A/N: I know, I should be continuing Freaky Weeky, but I thought this was a cute idea, so I had to write it down. I hope you liked it. Please review, even if you didn't!


End file.
